Silence
by The Great NeoDragon
Summary: After an attempt of espionage goes wrong in the new Insecticon fortress, Soundwave comes to find that he has a virus. A virus that warps the emotional and psychological processes, rendering him unable to tell fantasy from reality. COMPLETE!!!
1. Initial Confusion

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Silence

Soundwave stood silently in the shadows of a large corridor inside of a small fortress. The hallway led into a room where the Insecticons were scheming. It was surprising that the Insecticons had the mental capacity to build their own fortress, and not only that, they had hid it so well that it took the espionage expert three months with the help of his cassettes to find it. Soundwave had even gone so far as to wonder if the Insecticons were far more intelligent than Megatron ever gave them credit for. The Decepticon was in his tape deck mode laying on the floor against the wall. He knew very well just how dangerous it was to be this close, however he had to know what exactly it was they were planning. The Decepticons had not heard anything about the Insecticons for a long time, and considering the traitorous tendencies they seem to have, it was dangerous to leave them unsupervised. Megatron was even further baffled by how difficult it was for Soundwave to find. So as soon as their location was found, the stocky blue robot was immediately sent to spy on them. Obviously if the Insecticons went through enough pains to build themselves a hidden fortress they had something important to hide.

It was very difficult to spy on them, for their fortress had barely anything in it. No tables, chairs, it was simply barren. Perhaps it was because of the eternal hunger that plagued them, maybe they simply couldn't have chairs or desks because they'd eat them. However, Soundwave had not wanted to disappoint his commander and took a great risk by sneaking in. Inside of his chest cavity Laserbeak sat, the others were either back at the Decepticon base or spying elsewhere. There was something about this mission that made Soundwave want to leave all of his cassettes behind, but he knew that it would have been unwise not to have brought at least one of them. 

Even at this close range, Soundwave couldn't hear them. It was very strange, because his hearing was much more acute than most, and for him not to be able to hear at this close range was very disorientating. Perhaps the walls were built with some kind of material that prevented sound vibrations from passing through at all? Eventually Soundwave decided that he was going to have to get closer to hear them. He transformed into his robot mode and inched up closer to the edge of the wall. Detaching a small microphone into his hand, he held it right past the edge of the wall, and he could finally hear the Insecticons talking.

"Finally, the new plan can take place!" Bombshell's voice came from the room.

"Yes, the trap is set!" Kickback's voice could be heard.

"And snared, snared!" Shrapnel's voice came from behind Soundwave! Before the navy blue robot could turn around he found himself pressed against the wall. He could only watch out of the corner of his visor as Bombshell shot something into his neck. He felt a strange numbing sensation spread throughout his body, then finally darkness.

Upon awakening Soundwave found himself in robot mode, sitting down and leaning heavily against the wall of the corridor. He felt vaguely numb and disorientated, and tried to figure out what had just happened. But he couldn't remember anything, it was as if he had simply blacked out in the middle of his mission. Yet still he felt that he was forgetting something. Like he had a wayward memory just beyond his reach. He scanned Laserbeak to find that his status had not changed. He could sense that the Insecticons were still in the room that they were in before. Obviously Soundwave couldn't have blacked out long. It was odd that Laserbeak had not noticed his creator's sudden bout of unconsciousness, but before he could think more about it, a sudden feeling gripped him. 

All he could see was darkness, all he heard was silence, as if the world had collapsed beneath him into nothingness. Had he lost his mind?! Suddenly, he could see the inside of the corridor again, but the feeling of urgency still gripped him. A feeling of dread, that he had to get out of there immediately or the world was going to crash around him. Yet despite this overwhelming feeling of panic, he managed to sneak out of the place undetected, or so he had thought…

"Well, did you find anything about what the Insecticons are planning?" Megatron asked.

"Negative," Soundwave answered in his usual monotone. "Audio reception impossible."

"You imbecile!" Megatron growled. "Try again tomorrow, and this time don't disappoint me!"

"Yes, master Megatron," Soundwave said. He then turned and left the throne room. Once he was gone, Megatron let out a sigh. He knew just how hard Soundwave was working, and how difficult this mission apparently is. He also cared much more for his espionage expert than anyone would have ever known. However, he could not let himself go easy on his subordinate, as it would only make things harder for the both of them. Showing favor for a certain transformer would inspire jealousy among his other soldiers. The violence and hostility that would be directed at Soundwave would help things even less than the resentment that would be directed at himself. Also the fact that the idea of his second in command sharing the same feelings were slim to none. Soundwave rarely showed emotion at all, much less something as deep and strong as the feelings his leader had for him.

Soundwave walked silently back into his chambers. Rumble, Laserbeak and Ratbat were inside of their creator's chest cavity, and despite the Decepticon's outward stoic appearance, the cassettes felt his frustration. When inside of the Soundwave's tape deck, their consciousness connected with his, and while none of them were capable of reading into their creator's thoughts, they could sense his immediate feelings. They could feel his anger or fear whenever he fought the Autobots, his frustration and disappointment whenever he failed an assignment, and his excitement and joy after a successful mission. None of the other Decepticons had ever been capable of reading Soundwave, and to most it appeared that Soundwave didn't have any emotions at all. That whether he won or lost, during good situations or bad, he always retained his cold demeanor and monotonous voice. The only transformer that seemed capable of reading Soundwave at all was Megatron himself. And then there was the wave of emotion they felt while inside their creator's chest cavity whenever they were in the presence of their leader.

The cassettes had quite a difficult time trying to evaluate on the emotional pulse they would feel from Soundwave in regards to Megatron. It was much different than any emotional response they had ever felt from him. The only emotional pulse that was even remotely similar was whenever he praised or showed affection to their siblings. Such as whenever he would pet Ravage or praise Frenzy for a job well done. Rumble had figured that the emotion they felt from Soundwave in those situations was the transformer representation of what humans called "love." However it was a confusing element for the cassettes because they were well aware to the fact that transformers were built without the capability to process such strong emotional impulses. And even if that was the case, what he felt for Megatron had to be a different kind of love, for if it was the same they would have felt the same pulse. But the one they felt in his presence had a different frequency.

Ratbat had once suggested to Rumble to ask Soundwave about it, which Rumble had initially agreed. However after giving it more thought Rumble ultimately decided against it. He had the impression that even Soundwave himself didn't know exactly the identification of his own feelings. His forte was in neural circuitry and espionage, when it came to human-esque emotions he was unfamiliar.

Ever since Soundwave's return from his failed espionage attempt at the Insecticon fortress he had changed. Outwardly no one would have ever guessed, but while inside of his chest cavity the cassettes could sense it. The emotional pulses they felt were normally slow and rhythmic, symbolizing his calm and collective demeanor. Now they were erratic, slow one instant while fast the next. It unnerved the cassettes, they knew something was wrong. Very wrong. 


	2. Silence Shattered

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Silence Chapter 2 - Silence Shattered

Soundwave sat silently at his computer, hacking into the Autobot database. It was very difficult work, as the system continued to reset and change the password every fifteen minutes. And it took a short while for the espionage expert to crack the codes, so he found himself with very little time left before it would reset again. Under normal circumstances it was difficult, but by no means impossible for one with his expertise. However recently it has been harder for Soundwave to concentrate. He really couldn't identify exactly what was causing this, but he couldn't seem to control his thoughts. The decepticon could swear that he saw the shadows moving towards him, as if they wished to grasp him in their vice-like grip and pull him into nothingness. Soundwave shook his head to clear his thoughts. There was no one here, what he saw were phantoms of his own imagination. That was what scared him the most; his imagination never played tricks on him up until now.

After his failed attempt at espionage at the Insecticon fortress, Megatron ultimately decided to wait a little while before trying again. So instead he assigned Soundwave to hack into the Autobot's system files, a task that is usually moderately difficult to begin with, but for some reason now it was almost impossible. He couldn't remember why exactly he had failed. Soundwave remembered that he couldn't hear what the Insecticons were saying, and that he did something, but his memory was nothing but a blur. He could have gone to the infirmary and have a brain scan done, but he detested such things. The navy blue transformer knew first-hand how much damage a gifted neurotechnician could perform if given the opportunity. While none of the other decepticons were as talented at neurocircuitry as he was, nevertheless he was uncomfortable with the thought of anyone looking into his cranial cavity.

Finally, he finished copying and documenting all of the Autobot's most important files. Suddenly, a wave of nausea and panic gripped him. The world appeared to be spinning around him, as if to devour him. He stood up and looked around frantically. The shadows were surrounding him, he was under attack! Had the Autobots somehow snuck into his room? Or were they Insecticons?! He couldn't make out their features, but either way they were here to get him. Soundwave wasn't concerned as much for his own life as he was for his cassettes and Megatron. If these mysterious things killed him, they may very well go after them next!

Soundwave wasn't going to let that happen. The decepticon reached for his gun, and upon grasping it fired everywhere. He blew the shadows into oblivion! Every shot hit its mark, and yet they did not fall. Instead they laughed mockingly. Their horrid voices ringing in the air.

There was no escape.

Ravage and Frenzy were walking down the hallway.

"Do you guys notice somethin's wrong wit' Soundwave?" Frenzy asked quietly. Ravage nodded. "I mean, ev'r since he wen' to dat Insecticon place…he's been different. I can't put my finger on it…"

"Did you asked Laserbeak about it?" Ravage growled. All of the cassettes had the ability to communicate with each other and Soundwave, whether they could speak vocally or not.

"Yeah, Laserbeak said nuttin' happened. But somethin' must have happened!" Frenzy shook his head with frustration. "I know somethin's wrong, I can feel it…" Suddenly, a loud crash came from Soundwave's room. The two cassettes looked at each other before racing to the room…

Suddenly, the shadows faded into nonexistence as the door to his room creaked open. Soundwave whirled around to see who the intruder was, and relief washed over him as he saw that it was Ravage and Frenzy.

The two cassettes looked around the room in alarm. The entire room was a mess, chairs and tables overturned, the computer on the floor. Yet there were no signs of battle.

"What…what happened, Soundwave? Are you alright?!" Frenzy asked in genuine concern as he and Ravage ran to him. The navy blue decepticon leaned back against the wall and sank down to a sitting position.

"Status normal. No damage sustained," Soundwave answered slowly. "Intruders located and terminated."

"There were no intruders…" Ravage growled softly. Frenzy scratched his head; he didn't know what to make of it. There were no signs of battle, but if Soundwave said there had been intruders…

"What intruders? Do you know who dey were?" Frenzy asked.

"Negative," Soundwave replied warily. "Identification attempt failed," Frenzy and Ravage looked at each other again. None of this made any sense.

"Should I report this to Megatron for you-" Frenzy offered.

"No!" Soundwave suddenly raised his head. His visor flashed brightly, then dimmed back down to its normal glow. "No. Report unnecessary… the intruders are taken care of…" This sudden outburst alarmed the two cassettes.

"I'll stay here, you go tell the other cassettes what just happened," Ravage growled softly into Frenzy's audio receptors. The small decepticon nodded. "Maybe they'll know what to do…"

"Ok, well-uh. I'm gonna go and-uh, finish my work…" Frenzy stammered as he walked out of the room.

Soundwave didn't want him to go. Their appearance had chased the shadows away and he hoped that maybe their presence would keep them away. However, there was no way he could explain that to his young cassettes without causing them unnecessary worry. So he remained silent as the younger version of Rumble left the room. Fortunately, Ravage stayed. The panther-type transformer watched Frenzy leave, and then turned back around to face his creator.

"Would you like me to fix the room back up for you?" Ravage growled softly. It would give him something to do while keeping an eye on his object of his concern.

"Negative… I'll…I'll fix it later. Come here, Ravage," Soundwave commanded. The oldest of the cassettes walked over to him and sat back on his haunches. He wasn't sure what he expected his creator to do or say, but he did know that he didn't expect what came next. The larger decepticon reached one hand forward and rested it on top of the smaller's head and began to pet him. This even further confused the cassette. It wasn't rare for Soundwave to show affection to his 'children,' but under the circumstances it was the last response Ravage had expected. However at least for the moment Soundwave had the air of calm and collectiveness that Ravage recognized. So he laid down and purred softly as his master pet him.

"Rumble! Rumble!" Frenzy cried as he ran into the energon storage room. The elder twin turned to see the other running towards him. Buzzsaw, who was perched in the rafters, swooped down and landed on the ground next to Rumble. 

"What's wrong? What's going on?" Rumble asked as he placed his stack of energon cubes on the ground. "It's Soundwave isn't it?"

"He…I don't know wha's wrong wit' him, Rumble!" Frenzy cried.

"What did he do? What happened, Frenzy?" the elder cassette asked. The younger frantically explained the situation. Buzzsaw and Rumble looked at each other.

"We should tell Megatron," Rumble finally decided. Buzzsaw nodded in agreement. "C'mon, lets all go and talk to Megatron, he'll know what to do."

Ravage purred softly as his creator silently continued to pet him. Silence was never rare around Soundwave, as he had always been a transformer of few words. However now it was eerie. He didn't know what to make of any of it. Soundwave had always been so calm and rational…the source of stability amongst the war. It never crossed any of the cassettes that something could happen to their creator. Although they knew through first-hand experience that any day, any moment could be their last. That one of them may not return from the next battle. That they would likely not last forever. They had to be prepared for anything, it was just the nature of war. But for reasons none of the cassettes could not explain, they always thought that Soundwave would be there for them. That somehow he was immortal, always there to give advice, protection and stability. But now…

Soundwave silently watched his eldest cassette purr. It had a calming effect on him, and seemed to chase the shadows away. He had no idea what was happening to him, and that was more terrifying than anything. It was highly doubtful that his cassettes bought his lie, for verbal skills of any kind were difficult for him. He didn't even know himself what had happened, for he could have sworn that he had been under attack, but when he surveyed the damage, it was all his own. Talking to Megatron about it was a forbidden concept. If a decepticon were to lose his mind and no longer provide for the team, then he would immediately be destroyed. Soundwave worried about what would happen to his cassettes if he was ever destroyed. He knew Megatron would be good to them, he was always a good leader to them. It was the rest of the team he worried about, Starscream particularly. The jet decepticon would not hesitate to show the cassettes who the new boss was now that their creator and protector had been deactivated. The mere thought of it sent a wave of red-hot anger through him.

Soundwave was surprised by the sheer magnitude of his newfound rage. Had Starscream stood before him that instant, the tape deck transformer would have blown him away. He raised one hand up before him and clenched it into a fist. It was then he noticed with surprise that his hand was shaking Soundwave shook his head to clear his muddled thoughts. He wasn't like this. He wasn't a fighter by nature, and had never felt such hatred. While the worry that Starscream would take advantage of his cassettes had always been on his mind, he had always rationalized that it could never happen because he would always protect them. But the way he was thinking now, he felt as if he was already fading away. That he had to stop Starscream now before he vanished completely. Soundwave then noticed that his other hand was also shaking. Ravage looked up at him with concern. He too had noticed it.

"Masta' Megatron!" Frenzy cried as he, Rumble and Buzzsaw raced into their leader's throne room. Megatron had been discussing battle strategies with Starscream when the trio ran in, and was going nowhere with his stubborn subordinate. He turned to regard the cassettes with alarm. The frightened tone Frenzy had used immediately got his attention.

"What's wrong?" Megatron asked.

"Um…" Rumble felt uncomfortable telling Megatron about the previous events with Starscream present. If Starscream knew something was wrong with their creator, he would be the first one to take advantage of it. "Could we talk to you alone for a minute. Please, Lord Megatron…?"

Megatron turned to glare at Starscream. The smaller decepticon raised his hands up.

"Hey! If there's something going on, I should hear it too. Don't you agree, Megatron?"  
"Get out, Starscream," Megatron ordered.

"But…" Megatron raised his canon, "Ok point taken, I'm going!" Starscream swiftly exited the room.

"Alright, what's wrong?" Megatron asked warily as he turned to face the three.

"It's Soundwave…" Rumble began. "He's been acting so strange lately… I think…we think something's wrong with him…" Megatron raised one hand to silence him.

"Did this begin after his Insecticon espionage assignment?" Megatron asked.

The trio looked at each other. Finally, Frenzy answered, "Yeah, it did."

Megatron stood in thought for a moment. He too had noticed the change. But he wasn't sure what exactly it was, for Soundwave's demeanor had remained unchanged. It was the air about him, it just -felt- different. It was as if Megatron could sense his subordinate's distress, but just couldn't put his finger on it. But now it was beginning to make sense. "I think I know what it is. I bet those stupid Insecticons planted a cerebral shell in him."

"That's what we thought at first…" Rumble noted. Suddenly, the room shook. "What the heck was that?"

"Are we under attack?" Megatron looked around. Abruptly, Ravage ran in. He was mildly damaged.

Frenzy regarded the elder cassette with surprise. "Ravage! What happened?!"  
Ravage roared. The three cassettes gasped. Megatron, unable to decipher the panther's attempts at verbal communication, looked to his three brethren for a translation.

"Soundwave went crazy!" Frenzy cried in panic.

"He blew half of the wall down and ran away," Rumble explained, trying to keep calm. However it was easier said than done. "Ravage…Ravage tried to follow him, but Soundwave shot at him! Soundwave would never hurt us, but he shot at Ravage!" his voice cracked and bordered on hysterical.

"What?!" Megatron exclaimed. "Where is he going?!" Ravage shook his head and whimpered. The decepticon leader didn't need a translation - Ravage didn't know.

None of them knew.


	3. Scattered Thoughts

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Silence, Chapter 3 - Scattered Thoughts

He had to get away.

He had to figure out what was wrong with him. What was causing this.

Madness.

Was he going mad?

If the other Decepticons knew of this they would destroy him.

There would be no one here to protect his cassettes.

The shadows followed him, tracing his steps. They were waiting…

Waiting for him.

He didn't know where he was, the only thing he knew was…

He had to get away.

Megatron paced the room in silence, trying to figure out where Soundwave would go. Any kind of special place he liked to hang out, or somewhere he wanted to visit. He came up blank. The cassettes also tried to think of a place their creator would go, but they too came up with nothing. Soundwave left the Decepticon base only when his missions required it. While the leader of the Decepticons would never admit it to anyone, he was worried. Very worried.

"Don't bother looking for him," They whirled around to face Starscream.

"You dared to eavesdrop?" Megatron growled as he stood over Starscream threateningly. Starscream raised his hands in defense.

"Hey…I'm your second in command. I have a right to know!" Megatron aimed the barrel of his canon at his disobedient subordinate. "But, you know the rules! Hell, you made them! If a Decepticon were ever to lose his mind and can't fulfill his duties, then he is to be immediately terminated…"

"Only if it's irreversible or if the Decepticon can easily be replaced," Megatron snarled. "Such as _you_, for example. I would simply have to find another Decepticon with decent fighting skills and I'm done." Starscream scowled. "But Soundwave…where would I find another Decepticon who can hack computers, create energon cubes, create more Decepticons, espionage… need I go on?"

"Point taken…" Starscream hissed. "But if whatever he has is irreversible, I've got dibbs on his execution!" The jet transformer stormed off.

"Buzzsaw, keep an eye on Starscream. I want to make sure he doesn't cause any trouble," Megatron commanded as soon as his second in command was out of the room. The bird nodded in response and flew out of the room. "Frenzy, go and find Laserbeak and Ratbat. Tell them about what happened and have them look for Soundwave." Frenzy nodded, his face tight with worry. He swiftly ran off to find his brethren.

"I'm worried about him…" Rumble admitted softly.

"Don't worry," Megatron said, his voice surprisingly soft. "We'll find him."

Inside of the Autobot base sat Optimus Prime, calmly watching Spike and his father engaged in a game of something called "football." The Autobot leader found this rather curious, as the two humans appeared to be ramming into each other, both trying to take hold of the ball. To him it looked as if the two were engaged in a fight, but both of them insist that it's some kind of fun sport.

Spike ran backwards with the ball, "Catch this, Dad!"

"Okay son," Sparkplug also ran backwards and readied himself for the catch. "Throw it!" The younger human hurled the ball toward his father.

Suddenly, Ironhide ran in. Sparkplug turned to look at the crimson transformer and the football nailed him in the head.

"Dad! You alright?!" Spike asked as he rushed to his father's side.

"What's wrong, Ironhide?" Optimus Prime could tell by the look on the younger robot's face that something was wrong.

"Optimus, I got a message from Prowl…" Ironhide began. The Autobot leader nodded. Prowl had been patrolling near the power plants to the north of the base. "He said he picked up Soundwave on his radar scans."

"Soundwave?" Optimus tilted his head slightly. "There to attack the power plant, no doubt."

"That's what I thought too," Ironhide commented. "But no, he walked right by without even laying an eye on it. I don't know what the heck he's doing, but I'll bet it can't be good."

Suddenly, Ironhide's comlink came on. Prowl's voice was on the other end. "Ironhide, can you hear me? Ironhide!"

"I'm here," Ironhide responded.

"I'm under attack! I need backup!" Prowl cried. Gunshots could be heard in the background.

"Who's attacking ya?" Ironhide asked.

"Just Soundwave. I don't even see any of his cassettes. I could normally take him…but he's giving me a really hard time this time," Prowl answered.

"Relay your position," Prime issued his command into Ironhide's comlink.

"Just north of the base, right by the power plant,"

"Alright, we're on our way…" Prime turned to leave.

"Optimus!" the Autobot leader stopped. "I think…I think something's wrong."

"Why?" Ironhide asked.

"Well, he's not doing anything to the power plant itself…he's only attacking me. And I don't see any of his cassettes. Under normal circumstances I would have been molested by his cassettes by now…" Prowl answered.

"Alright Prowl, we'll keep that in mind. Just hold on, we're on our way," Prime ordered. "Ironhide, get Wheeljack, Mirage and Bumblebee-"

"Can I go too, Optimus?" Spike asked.

"Yes Spike, but be careful and stay with Bumblebee."

Prowl was successful in leading his adversary a safe distance away from the power plant. However he was beginning to tire. Soundwave on the other hand looked like he was just getting started. This whole situation was confusing. It wouldn't have been shocking to see Starscream attacking him, but Soundwave was smarter than that. He wouldn't simply attack an Autobot without a plan behind it. Initially Prowl thought that Soundwave was trying to distract him while his cassettes raided the power plant, but throughout their fight he had kept an eye on it. The power plant remained undamaged and the cassettes were nowhere to be found. Very odd…

Soundwave flew up and shot down a rain of laser beams at the police Autobot. Prowl barely strafed aside and retaliated with his own array of beams. Two of them hit their mark and yet Soundwave appeared unfazed. 

They better get here soon…

Soundwave took aim and fired again.

The shadows surrounded him. But he had finally found their leader.

Maybe if he destroyed their leader the rest would fade away.

Maybe their laughter would stop.

But their leader was much more nimble than the other shadows. Barely any of his frantic blasts connected.

Their leader shot back at him, yet he barely felt the blows connect.

He couldn't let himself fall. He couldn't let those things beat him.

If he died there would be no one here to protect his cassettes.

There would be no one here to make energon cubes for Megatron.

No one here to keep an eye on Starscream.

No one.

He raised his canon and fired again. This time he hit his mark.

The leader fell.

But the shadows kept laughing…

Optimus Prime, Wheeljack, Mirage, Ironhide and Bumblebee arrived at the scene to find Prowl sprawled out on the floor. Soundwave was flying above them, firing an array of shots.

"Bumblebee, Wheeljack, protect Prowl. Ironhide you, Mirage and I will fight Soundwave," Optimus Prime commanded.

"Op…Optimus," Prowl raised his head to regard his leader. "Be careful… some.. something's wrong…"

The Autobot leader nodded. "I will, you just take care of yourself now"

Soundwave landed quite a few feet away. He raised his gun and fired a barrage of lasers. Wheeljack and Bumblebee lifted Prowl to his feet, each holding one of the injured Autobot's arms. Ironhide and Optimus Prime fired back. Soundwave did nothing to dodge their assaults, and yet the attacks didn't even slow him down. Soundwave flew back up into the air, raining lasers on the whole team. Optimus Prime found it odd that he made no attempt to flee or even to find cover. He had figured that once they arrived Soundwave would find himself outnumbered and run away. But that was not the case. Prowl was right, something was wrong. Mirage edged closer to his leader. "Optimus, I have an idea…"

He had felled the leader.

Yet the shadows kept coming.

Their laughter echoed in the air.

Now there were five more leaders.

Was there no end to them?

Once Wheeljack and Bumblebee carried Prowl a safe distance away, Wheeljack raced back to where the others were. Bumblebee and Spike stayed back where Prowl was and surveyed the battle from afar.

Optimus and Ironhide continued to shoot back at Soundwave, but it was becoming more difficult to hit him because he had the aerial advantage. Suddenly, Megatron came from the sky.

"Soundwave!" Megatron yelled. The cassette player decepticon stopped to the sound of his leader's voice, and turned to see him. While his back was turned, Optimus Prime took careful aim and fired. He hit his mark - Soundwave's flight system. The decepticon fell from the sky and landed heavily on the ground. Upon impact, a small object ejected from his forehead and landed on the floor with a clatter. The dark blue robot appeared to be unconscious.

The Megatron hologram faded as Mirage revealed himself from several feet away.

"What's this?" Wheeljack commented as he knelt down next to his fallen adversary and picked up the small object.

"A cerebral shell?" Optimus asked.

"Maybe…but this is the strangest one I've ever seen," Wheeljack was right in his observation. This particular cerebral shell was larger, and had a panel on the side. When the scientist Autobot opened the panel, there was nothing inside. The shell appeared to be hollow. "I'm going to scan this when we get back."

"So what're we gonna do about-" Ironhide began. Suddenly Soundwave scrambled onto his feet, startling them all. Before any of them could react, he leapt into the air and despite the damage his flight system received he flew off. "Should I go after him?!"

"No," Optimus replied with a shake of his head. "Lets go back to base and analyze that shell…"

Megatron growled in frustration. No matter where they looked, they came up with nothing. Soundwave could be anywhere! Ravage attempted to trace Soundwave's tracks, but eventually the trail ended. At one point it seems Soundwave took it to the skies. Yet Ratbat and Laserbeak also came up with nothing. It was if their creator had vanished off the face of the earth.

The more time that elapsed, the more worried he became.

What if he was dead? Megatron decided not to come to that conclusion until he found reasonable evidence.

"Masta' Megatron!" Frenzy cried, running into the room. The decepticon leader turned to regard the smaller robot. "The Autobots are here!"

"What?!" Megatron growled. What the hell could they want? This wasn't a good time to be fighting Autobots.

"The other decepticons'r attackin' them, but they ain't fightin' back. Optimus Prime says he wants to talk to you," Frenzy explained.

"Tell the decepticons to cease fire. I will talk to him," Megatron commanded.

Megatron walked out to find Optimus Prime standing before a handful of other Autobots. They were all armed, but none of them had their weapons out.

"Speak, Optimus Prime," Megatron stated warily. "Give us a good reason why we shouldn't annihilate you all where you stand."

Prime was silent for a long time. "Because Soundwave's a walking time bomb." 


	4. Temporary Truce

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Silence Chapter 4 - Temporary Truce

It was one of the very few times where a temporary alliance between the Autobots and Decepticons would be made. Both teams decided it was best to get together at a neutral place - as neither side trusted the other enough to allow them safe passage into their respective home bases. The two teams met together at an abandoned factory, Wheeljack bringing with him some of his lab equipment.

"Now explain this further, Optimus Prime…" Megatron said when both teams were as settled in as they were going to be. Just behind him stood Rumble, Frenzy and Ravage. Behind them stood the Constructicons. The other Decepticons were back at the base, as Megatron didn't want them to know about Soundwave's condition. He knew that most of the Decepticons were quite the opportunists, and would not have hesitated to take advantage of the situation. On the other hand he had to bring some kind of backup, incase the Autobots had a trap in store for them. The Constructicons were very loyal to Megatron and never showed any dislike particularly for Soundwave, so the Decepticon leader ultimately decided that they would be the best soldiers to bring. Ratbat and Laserbeak were still looking for their creator, and Buzzsaw was making sure Starscream didn't start a little expedition of his own.

"I think Wheeljack would be better at explaining this than I am, Megatron," the Autobot leader said as he stepped back. Behind him were Wheeljack, Blaster, Ironhide and the Dinobots. Wheeljack stepped forward confidently.

"Do you recognize this?" Wheeljack asked as he calmly raised his hand. In his palm he held a small object.

"That looks like a cerebral shell," Megatron growled. "I knew it! That's what it had to be!"

"Not necessarily…" Wheeljack shook his head. "I mean, you're right in a way. It is a cerebral shell. But this one's a little different."

"Evaluate," Megatron said as he crossed his arms.

"Well, the way cerebral shells normally are, they take over your mind and make you a slave. However once you remove the cerebral shell its effects are over with and you're back to normal…" Wheeljack turned the small object in his hand, revealing a panel on the side. "Look here, this cerebral shell appears to be hollow. However I did find small traces of liquid inside, and when I analyzed it I found that it was energon."

"Energon? Why would it have energon inside?" Frenzy asked.

"The purpose of the energon was to carry a virus. Much like human diseases can be transferred by getting into the bloodstream, this cerebral shell ejected energon in order to merge with Soundwave's. The virus, now finding its host, begins to spread. We may have knocked out the cerebral shell, but the damage has already been done," Wheeljack explained. "The virus appears to disrupt the psychological and emotional processes, and keeps the victim in constant fight-or-flight mode. When a battle begins, our systems send power to our visual, motor and auditory circuits thereby increasing our overall awareness. After the battle is over, our systems slow down and defrag. But by keeping Soundwave in fight mode, his systems eventually will wear out and destabilize. Ultimately, if his systems become too unstable, they will collapse into itself and he'll explode."

A cold chill ran through Megatron at the news. The cassettes gasped. "Is this reversible?" Megatron asked in a low voice.

"That's what I'm getting to…" Wheeljack placed the small object on a table. He then searched through his lab equipment and picked up a small vial with a purplish liquid inside. "I made a cure. Unfortunately due to time constraints I was only able to make one. That means we only have one chance at this. According to my calculations, Soundwave's running out of time. The only way we could administer it to him, as far as I'm aware, is orally."

Optimus Prime shook his head. "That's going to pose quite a challenge, as I don't think Soundwave's going to be too cooperative…"

Megatron stood silently in thought. Ravage whimpered and Megatron turned to look at him and the other cassettes. "Wait a minute…what if we laced one of the cassettes with that cure?"

"I don't know, I never thought of that…" Wheeljack looked over at Blaster. "C'mere Blaster…"

A groan escaped the boom-box transformer. "How am I supposed to know whether or not it'll work?" He sighed in annoyance and ejected Ramhorn, who stayed in cassette mode. Wheeljack caught the small cassette in his hand. "And besides, we'd all be better off without that poor excuse for a sound system anyway…"

"Blaster, that's enough," Optimus Prime said sternly.

Megatron growled angrily at the smart-mouthed Autobot, but after a moment looked at the Autobot leader with suspicion. "Why _are_ you helping us, anyway?"

"Because if Soundwave explodes, he'll take out anything within a five mile radius, including humans and transformers alike," Prime explained. Wheeljack took out another vial of energon and squirted something into it. Afterwards he gently placed the cassette down on the table, pulled out some of the tape inside and laced it with the energon. When he was done, Ramhorn tightened the tape back up.

"Ok, now play this," Wheeljack gave the tape back to Blaster, who opened his chest compartment and inserted the cassette.

"What's supposed to happen now? You didn't put that much energon on it, I don't think I'll feel the difference." Blaster pointed out.

Wheeljack shook his head, "Oh, we'll know if it works or not."

Suddenly Blaster began to feel tired, "What the hell did you lace my cassette with…?"

"A new serum I was working on. It's based off of the drug humans called 'tranquilizers.' I wanted to see if I could make something for transformers that could emulate the effect that tranquilizers have on humans," Wheeljack explained. "One good thing about all this is that not only do I get to test Megatron's theory, but my experiment, too." Blaster lowered his head and began to fall back. Grimlock and Ironhide swiftly caught him. "Apparently both the serum and your theory works."

Megatron had watched the entire exchange in silence. "Do you have any more of that serum?" 

"I sure do!" Wheeljack answered proudly.

"Could that be used to slow Soundwave down?" Megatron asked thoughtfully.

"Maybe, I haven't had a chance to see if merely shooting them with it would work or not. But if it does work than it would really help us," Wheeljack said.

"We don't have enough time to test it. Give me some of it as soon as possible, and I'll handle the rest," Megatron ordered. Wheeljack snatched another vial of it and gave both it and the cure to the Decepticon leader.

"Don't be so arrogant, Megatron," Optimus Prime warned. "Let us help-" Suddenly, Rumble's comlink came on. A small squeak emitted from the other side.

Rumble looked up at his leader, "It's Ratbat. He's found Soundwave just east of our base!" Megatron nodded in understanding, then looked back at the Autobots.

"This is our matter. You've interfered in it long enough," Megatron said with a shake of his head. He then turned to regard the decepticons that were with him. "Rumble, tell Ratbat to keep an eye on him. Decepticons, head out!" The Constructicons, Rumble, Frenzy and Ravage flew out of the warehouse, Megatron right behind them when suddenly-

"Megatron, wait!" Prime suddenly called. The decepticon leader stopped in mid-flight and turned to regard his adversary.

"This doesn't change things between us, Optimus Prime. After this our alliance is terminated," Megatron stated coldly.

"I understand. Just be careful, Soundwave's life is in your hands," the Autobot leader said softly.

"What makes you think I care about his life?" Megatron growled. The decepticon leader always regarded feelings as weakness, and the thought of an Autobot having any idea of his feelings for one of his own subordinates sent a cold chill through him.

"All I know is that if it was one of my own that would be the top of my concerns," Optimus Prime said gently.

"It _would_ be!" Megatron snorted, "You're an _Autobot_!"

Optimus Prime sighed softly. "I'm a _Transformer_."

__

Author's Notes: Initially I thought that this and the previous chapter would be the weakest because of the Autobots' involvement. But as far as I am aware, Megatron doesn't have any scientists that are of Wheeljack's caliber and I do believe that it would take something like this for Megatron to begin to realize and acknowledge his feelings for Soundwave. In this chapter, I wondered if it would be boring because the Autobots play such a gigantic role and the lack of Soundwave's actual presence. However, I've read and re-read this chapter a few times, and there is no place where I could break in different scenes without disrupting the flow. 

Thank you so much for your reviews! They make me very happy! I constantly check my yahoo mail for review alerts, so please read and review so I know how I'm doing. 


	5. Confrontation

Silence Chapter 5 - Confrontation

Shadows surrounded him.

Chased him.

Haunted him.

There was no escape.

No escape.

The phantoms laughed.

Ratbat had spotted his creator moving aimlessly through a sparse forest directly East of the Decepticon base and had immediately alerted Megatron. The commander of the Decepticons specifically ordered that Ratbat do nothing but keep an eye on him. Gun in hand, Soundwave moved through the forest as if he expected the trees to attack him. It was hard for the young cassette to simply stay back and watch his creator, his father, in such distress. Yet there was nothing else that he really could do, so he continued to hover soundlessly in the trees.

Megatron flew silently to the scene with the Constructicons, Ravage, Rumble and Frenzy. None of the Decepticons disturbed him as they knew he was mentally developing a plan of action. That's what made Megatron such an excellent leader, he was never the type to dive into anything without considering all possibilities and potential obstacles. He had to, if he had ever wanted to live through the war he couldn't afford not to. This fact eased the minds of the three cassettes flying alongside him, even if only a little. If there was anyway to bring back their creator, Megatron will find it.

"Alright," The Decepticon leader finally stated. "Here's the plan. When we arrive I'm going to transform into gun mode. Scrapper, I need you to fire the tranquilizer serum at Soundwave. You need to make sure you have a clear shot before you fire, because we only have one chance at this. Frenzy, Rumble, I need you to distract him so Scrapper can get a good aim."

"Yes Lord Megatron," Scrapper said with a nod. Frenzy and Rumble also nodded.

"Ravage, I'm going to lace you with the antidote. I want you to stay back until the tranquilizer serum takes effect, then come to me and transform into tape mode. I'll insert you into Soundwave's tape compartment." Megatron continued. Ravage growled softly, with a slight nod of his head. The group spotted a large assortment of trees and knew they were approaching their target. "Alright, get ready…"

Trees. Phantoms. The two intertwined.

Together they reached for him.

One blast split them apart.

Only to come back together.

Ratbat flew up to Megatron as soon as he and the others were within his sights. The youngest cassette directed their gaze to his creator. From their distance he was only a small figure, but by his dark blue complex and newfound erratic posture they knew he was there. Soundwave was walking slowly, spastically. He would occasionally fire his gun at a random tree or object. Rumble watched in silent horror, and dared to wonder if Soundwave, his creator, confidant, friend and father-figure, was already gone. The thought shot a cold chill through him. The small blue robot shook his head vigorously to clear his thoughts. He wouldn't think that way. He refused to think that way. As long as Soundwave was walking and in one piece, this virus was reversible. Even at this point, the virus had to be reversible. Rumble couldn't think any other way or he would find himself falling to despair.

"Rumble!" Megatron broke the cassette's train of thought.

"Wh-What?" Rumble shook his head again.

"Don't lose yourself, Rumble," Frenzy cried as the group landed a few yards away, making sure that they were not within Soundwave's range of vision. "We gotta be strong, we HAVE to be strong! If we fail…if we fail…we…we just can't fail!!"

Despite the effects of the virus, Soundwave's hearing was just as acute as if ever was, and upon hearing Frenzy's frantic outcry turned in their direction, gun poised. His whole posture was…frightening in the eyes of his creations, especially up this close. He had one shoulder hunched, his visor flickered violently as if reflecting his inner turmoil. The hand that held the gun was shaking. Rumble quickly raised his hands to show that he was unarmed and walked slowly out from the safety of the scenery, Frenzy right behind him. Megatron and the Constructicons remained hidden, hoping that Soundwave hadn't already noticed them.

"Soundwave, it's me! Rumble!" he cried. The gun did not lower. Daring to look into his creator's eyes, all he saw was his own fluctuating reflection. "Don…Doncha remember me?"

"You can't have forgotten us!" Frenzy added, his voice bordering on hysteria. He stood directly behind Rumble, terror paralyzing him. Frenzy felt ashamed of his own fear. How could he be afraid of the one who gave him life? He wanted to say the right things, do the right things. He wanted Soundwave to revert back to the way he was. He wanted everything to be alright.

But all he could do was stand frozen behind his elder brethren, as his creator slipped further and further away…

Megatron looked over at Scrapper, who nodded. Swiftly and silently the Decepticon leader transformed into his gun form and landed in the hands of the Constructicon leader.

"Please…say something…do something…" Rumble whimpered. "Please…show us you're still there…"

Scrapper rose the gun.

"R…R-Rum….Rumble…" The small cassette's heart leapt.

The shadows stood over Rumble.

Their claw-like hands reached for him.

He wanted to warn Rumble, tell him to get away.

That the phantasms wanted to consume him.

To drag him into the black hole of madness.

But his voice would not cooperate.

Verbal skills were always out of his grasp.

He never knew how to tell his cassettes how important they were to him.

Never knew how to tell Megatron how important he was to him.

Never knew how to tell them that…

Even if it would cost him his life….

He will protect them.

Scrapper aimed carefully.

He only had one shot at this, if he missed then the mission may already be lost…

Frenzy watched his creator from his place behind his elder brother. Soundwave looked as if he saw something that they didn't. His visor flickered violently, and suddenly brightened considerably. Without any warning he charged forward and began to fire a rain of laser beams around the two small cassettes. Frozen in terror, they could only brace themselves.

Startled from the sudden outburst, Scrapper fired.

The Constructicon leader's aim was true. The tranquilizer serum landed directly on Soundwave's chest and face. Momentarily stunned, the blue robot stopped in his tracks and wiped his unarmed hand across his face. As he examined the liquid with some confusion, Rumble and Frenzy took that time to flee and hide behind one of the many trees that decorated the land. Megatron transformed back into robot mode.

Physical statistics indicated a foreign substance.

He examined the substance - energon?

"Do you think the serum's going to work?" Scavenger asked.

"I don't really know. It may end up rolling right off, but if some of it can seep through the cracks in Soundwave's armor it may effect him, even if only a little," Megatron answered honestly. The object of their concern abruptly turned to the direction the blast had come from, his gun poised. Grabbing onto the gun with both hands he fired multiple streams of lasers in their direction. Megatron and the Constructicons could barely dodge them.

"I don't think it's working, Lord Megatron," Longhaul stated as he narrowly avoided another laser. He had a point. The serum had affected Blaster almost instantly. Then again Wheeljack had stated that he never had a chance to try simply shooting it at someone as opposed to putting it directly into their body like he had done with Blaster.

"Alright then we're going to have to settle with brute force," Megatron finally acknowledged. The Constructicons charged forward. Soundwave fired at them, but his aim was becoming more and more unfocused as they drew nearer. Panic overtaking the virus stricken decepticon, he hurled the gun at them and fortunately missed. Longhaul tackled him down, and as he landed the other Constructicons were quick to swarm him. They pinned his limbs, and despite his desperate attempts to break free they would not relent. Megatron knelt down by Soundwave's shoulder, and noticed that all during the struggle Soundwave's flickering visor was locked directly onto him. The Decepticon leader didn't know what to make of it. Was Soundwave staring at him in fear, or was he silently pleading for comfort? The Constructicons were having a hard time keeping him down. Anxiety gave him strength beyond which he ever had, and it took every ounce of their being to keep him down. Ravage came closer, ready to come at Megatron's call. The silver transformer looked directly into the wavering eyes of his subordinate…and found no answers.

Despite his attempts to disregard his emotions, it tortured Megatron to see his loyal soldier-no, his friend in such distress. Although at this point he could simply call Ravage, he at least wanted to do something to alleviate the smaller robot's anguish.

"Don't worry, you'll be alright soon," Megatron said with the softest voice that he could muster. "Just hang on." He didn't think his words would have any effect, but to his surprise Soundwave slowly raised his hand toward him, the rest of his arm pinned by Scrapper.

The shadows finally had him.

Despite his struggles he couldn't escape them.

Nothing could break their cold and vile grasp.

But in the midst of it all was Megatron.

Megatron placed one hand on top of Soundwave's. After that his struggles immediately ceased. The Decepticon leader felt awkward at this situation. However, to his surprise the feeling was not stemmed from the physical contact as much as it was from the Constructicon spectators. Figuring that it wouldn't be long before snide comments would start flying, he quickly looked over to Ravage.

"Now Ravage," Megatron commanded as Scrapper hit the eject button on Soundwave's shoulder. Ravage ran to Megatron and transformed into his cassette form as his creator's chest compartment opened. A feeling of relief washed over him as he caught Ravage and prepared to insert him into Soundwave's chest cavity. But suddenly Soundwave's visor flashed brightly, and the Decepticons could hear the gears in him speeding up drastically. "What the-?"

With incredible strength, Soundwave sat up, pulling his hand out from under his leader's and hurling all of the Constructicons off of him simulantly.

"What's going on?!" Scrapper demanded as he fell back. Scavenger fell on top of him with a grunt of pain.

Megatron sprung onto his feet the same time that Soundwave did, still holding onto Ravage, "What's happening?!" Soundwave pulled his shoulder canon off, holding it like a gun, and fired it at everything, everyone. Trees, Constructicons, Megatron…they were all targets. Shielding Ravage with his arm, Megatron retreated behind a small group of trees. The Constructicons also found shelter either behind trees or large rocks.

Hook did a scan on Soundwave from behind as Scrapper fired back, purposely missing him, with only the intention of keeping his attention. "The sudden outburst is being caused by the destabilizing of his systems," Hook informed.

"No!" Megatron cried. He glared at Hook, "Do you know how much time we have left?"

"Not much, sir," Hook answered honestly. "I think…I think it may be better if we get away from here now. We've…done all we can…"

"It's not over yet!" Megatron cried. "I do not give up that easily!"

Rumble and Frenzy had watched the whole thing from the safety of the trees they had hidden behind. They wanted to do something, anything to help, but fear held them still. Suddenly, a beep from Rumble's comlink broke their paralysis. Rumble looked down at his wrist comlink…

"I agree with him, Lord Megatron," Scavenger said meekly. "We should save ourselves…"

"No," Scrapper ran over to them, barely avoiding the multitude of laser blasts. "Lord Megatron said it's not over yet, and damn it, it's not. Since when were we the type to give up!?" Megatron looked over to the Constructicon leader with surprise. Scrapper looked over to him with a knowing flicker in his dark eyes. "Get ready to try again."

"Lord Megatron!" Rumble cried as he and Frenzy ran to them.

"What else is wrong?" Megatron turned to face the smaller Decepticons. He knew that whatever news Rumble has would be sure to complicate matters even further.

"I just got a message from Buzzsaw, Starscream's on his way here!" Rumble cried.

__

Author's Note: Sorry this chapter took so long. This was an emotionally charged chapter and I was worried about trying to keep everyone in character. (One of my biggest pet peeves are serious stories with the characters acting OOC.) However, I've read, re-read and re-did this chapter and I hope that I've managed to keep them in character as much as I could considering the situation. My biggest worry in this regard is Megatron for he's never been the emotional type. The next chapter's also going to be quite difficult, as it will have the same emotional charge (if not more) than this one did. Please tell me if you liked this chapter and if I did an ok job of keeping the Decepticons in character. Thank you all so much for your reviews! They mean a great deal to me and have helped a lot to mark my progress! =D


	6. Breaking the Silence

****

Silence Chapter 6 - Breaking the Silence

"What?! Starscream's on his way here?!" Megatron roared with rage. "When I get my hands on his scrawny neck…"

A squawk came in through Rumble's comlink. The little blue cassette robot looked down at his wrist comlink, than afterwards looked up at Megatron, "Thundercracker and Skywarp are with him!"

"What're we gonna do?" Frenzy cried.

"We'll follow your orders, just tell us what you want us to do," Scrapper spoke on behalf of the Constructicons, whether or not they agreed with him. Megatron stood in silence for a long time.

"Scrapper," Megatron said sullenly, "You and the Constructicons go and scrap that coward Starscream! Thundercracker and Skywarp may not know exactly what's going on, so warn them to leave. If they refuse, then you can scrap them."

"What…are you going to do?" Longhaul asked meekly.

"Just get out of here," Megatron snapped. "I'll meet you back at the base!"

"Yes, Lord Megatron," Scrapper said with a nod. He then took off flying, the other Constructicons following. Upon witnessing the departure of the Constructicons, Soundwave raised his gun to fire at them. Smoke was beginning to emit from the wires the connected his arms to his shoulders, and his visor looked as if it was on fire.

"Soundwave!" Frenzy cried as he ran out of cover and stood before his creator. 

"Frenzy! Get back here!" Megatron ordered.

"You've got to stop! You're going to die if you don't stop!" Soundwave abruptly turned to face him, aiming the gun at the one he had meant to protect. Frenzy took a step back.

Everything

A haze of red.

It's over.

Won't go without a fight.

Starscream, Thundercracker and Skywarp were less than a few miles away by the time the Constructicons had arrived.

"Starscream, what do you think you're doing?" Scrapper threatened.

"What do you mean?" Starscream snapped. "It's none of your damn business!"

"Under Megatron's orders it's our business!" Scrapper shot back. "You wouldn't happen to be looking for someone, would you?"

"And what if I was? It doesn't matter. Just get out of my way and I will be merciful when I become leader!" Starscream declared.

"What's going on here?" Thundercracker asked, looking over at Starscream.

"Starscream wants to violate a direct order of Megatron, and for that we have been sent to stop and punish him," Hook explained.

"However, you and Skywarp can be spared if you leave now," Longhaul explained.

"Ha! They would never leave my side! If you fight one you fight all!" Starscream snarled.

"Doesn't look that way to me, Screamer. Look behind you," Scavenger gestured behind Starscream. The jet transformer turned around to see his two subordinates leaving.

"We're not going to be punished for sticking around with you, we're outta here!" Skywarp said as he and Thundercracker sped off. Starscream growled with rage.

"This is mutiny!" Starscream shrieked. He then turned and gave the Constructicons a pleading look. "You wouldn't really want to hurt one of your own, would you? I mean, I-I was just joking, please have mercy…"

Soundwave fired the gun. Rumble ran in front and shielded his younger brethren from the blast. 

"No!" Megatron roared.

"Rumble!" Frenzy cried. The impact sent Rumble sailing into his younger twin, knocking them both out. But right after he fired, Soundwave swayed and collapsed onto one knee. The gun fell from numbed fingers.

"What's going on?" Megatron whispered. His stomach quenched with fear as he wondered if Soundwave's was getting ready to explode. One hand on his head, the inflicted robot tried to struggle back onto his feet, but ultimately fell on his side. A gasp escaped Megatron as he realized what it was - the tranquilizer serum! It had a delayed reaction, but it was finally working!

He commanded his limbs to move.

They would not comply.

His strength had dissipated

As quickly as it appeared.

I'm sorry Megatron

I failed you…

It was then Megatron also remembered that he was still holding onto Ravage. He looked down at the small cassette with the realization that he still had a chance. Without hesitation he rushed to Soundwave's side and pushed down the eject button on his shoulder. As his chest compartment opened, Soundwave turned his head to look at Megatron. His visor was dim, occasionally flickering. The Decepticon leader swiftly inserted Ravage into Soundwave's chest and closed the panel. The ailing robot didn't seem to know what was going on, but upon feeling something being inserted into his tape compartment his visor lit back up. Immediately Megatron grabbed both of his hands to prevent him from hitting the button on his shoulder and ejecting Ravage. As the cassette began to manually turn the spokes inside, Soundwave kicked Megatron off with the last reminisce of strength.

Megatron landed on his back with a frustrated growl. Soundwave pushed himself onto one elbow, and with his other hand hit the eject button to discharge what he thought was a foreign object. However, right as his chest compartment began to open, Megatron lunged forward and pushed it shut. He then slapped the smaller robot's hand off of the button. Soundwave reached for his gun, but Megatron kicked it away and once again snatched his hands. The two then struggled, which Megatron was surprised to discover that they were even-matched due to Soundwave's sudden enhance of strength and Megatron's growing weariness. However Soundwave's power fluctuated rapidly and drastically, and with the tranquilizer serum taking full effect it wasn't long until once again his strength waned. The Decepticon leader took this opportunity to overpower the smaller robot. Thinking only with his instincts Megatron pulled down Soundwave's arms then quickly threw his own arms around his waist, thereby pinning both of the defective robot's arms to his sides.

Soundwave fought back with what little energy he had left. Megatron held on as tightly as his strength would allow. Fortunately the tranquilizer serum had taken full effect and finally the smaller robot's struggles ceased. At that point Megatron suddenly found himself in a very awkward position. He was quite glad that there was no one here to bear witness, or he would have never heard the end of it. However the silver transformer didn't want to ease his hold for fear that Soundwave may once again fight back and break loose. 

Megatron couldn't help but wonder if the antidote was really going to work. What if the Autobots were lying, and that the supposed 'antidote' that they gave him was bogus? It wouldn't have surprised him, in fact he would have done the same thing. However the Autobots had always been sickeningly virtuous, allowing their lives to be governed by chastity. That's what made them Autobots. On the other hand, the Autobots and Decepticons have been at war for millions of years. They could easily have decided to abandon honor just this once, for the sake of destroying one of the highest ranking associates thereby dealing a crippling blow to the Decepticons. He never had the time nor chance to test the antidote. He could only wait for the result, and that fact caused the Decepticon leader great anguish. After everything they had went through, after everything Soundwave went through, he couldn't bare the thought of the antidote failing. 

Megatron then noticed something softly touching his shoulder, and realized that he had tightened his grip. Once again feeling awkward, he loosened his hold slightly. Afterwards he turned his head and saw that Soundwave had laid his head on his commander's shoulder. Whether it represented affection or sheer exhaustion was beyond Megatron's knowledge. He too was fatigued, all of the stress and apprehension had taken its toll on him. However listening to Ravage turning the spokes eased the mind of the Decepticon leader, for as long as the cassette was inside the antidote must be working.

Frenzy groaned as he regained consciousness, drawing Megatron's attention. He pulled himself into a sitting position as his visual, memory and audio circuits reactivated. What he saw dissipated his fog of drowsiness. The younger cassette didn't know what he expected to find, but surely he didn't expect to see what looked like Soundwave and Megatron hugging. 

Megatron glared threateningly at the human-sized robot. "Don't say a _word_, Frenzy. I'm _warning_ you!" 

Frenzy complied, only smiling widely. Rumble also began to rise with a loud yawn. However upon seeing Megatron and Soundwave, he was brought to full awareness, "What's going on?"

Megatron gave both cassettes a warning glance, "Ravage is administering the antidote right now."

"Is it working?" Rumble asked with genuine worry. Yet he couldn't help but feel excited. Would his creator, his father be all right? Was the nightmare finally over?

"I think so…" the Decepticon leader answered with a tired sigh. "It looks that way." Soundwave hadn't moved since laying his head on his commander's shoulder. Megatron loosened his grip and examined the smaller robot. Soundwave's visor was dark, he was asleep. He appeared to be stable, only burned out from everything that has happened. With a small smile, Megatron pulled himself onto his feet, picking up Soundwave with him. "Lets go home."

Audio circuits…online.

He could hear someone typing on a computer.

Perception sensors…online.

He was laying in some kind of thick, warm liquid.

Visual functions…online.

He appeared to be in a room. Upon surveying his surroundings Soundwave discovered that he was in Megatron's room. The Decepticon leader was sitting in a large chair, typing something into a computer and occasionally drawing something on a map.

Soundwave remembered everything…but it felt like it was all a dream. He experienced a strange sense of serenity and peace, as if he had awakened from a terrible nightmare to find that he was in the safety of his home. This left him feeling invigorated, and with he sat up. Upon hearing a splash he looked down to see that he was sitting in a pool of energon, although he really didn't know why. Megatron raised his head and looked at Soundwave, he too hearing the splash.

"Ah, you're awake," Megatron said, his voice surprisingly soft. He then coughed lightly as Soundwave examined the pool of energon he was sitting in. "Your wires were overloaded. Your auto repair systems could handle it, but having energon in contact with it speeds the process."

Soundwave nodded in response, then tilted his head slightly at the computer and map with curiosity. "What are you doing?" Megatron got up from his chair, picking up the map with him and walked over to Soundwave, finally kneeling by his side.

"I'm constructing a plan for those abominable Insecticons," the Decepticon leader answered. He then smiled evilly, "Tell me what you think of this." He held the map out before them. "I call this the "Kick Their Ass" plan. Basically, we take about twelve Decepticons, swarm their damn fortress and demolish it and them!"

"Twelve against three, attack on fortress," Soundwave repeated monotonously. "Chances of success high." Megatron laughed at his observation, then suddenly grew solemn.

"How are you, Soundwave?" Megatron asked seriously.

"Status normal," the smaller robot answered mechanically. His visor brightened slightly. "I…was defective… and in need of your assistance… Fortunately you were there. …Thank you" That answer brought a smile back on the visage of his leader.

"I'm just glad you're alright," Megatron replied, placing one hand on top of Soundwave's. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Who the hell could that be?" His subordinate answered with a shrug. The Decepticon leader pushed himself back onto his feet and walked over to the door. When he opened it he found Scrapper standing before him, holding Starscream's head in his hand.

"Excellent, Scrapper. Did he beg for mercy?" Megatron asked.

"Like a true coward," Scrapper replied.

"That doesn't surprise me. However he is a good fighter. Take him and whatever is left of him to the repair center. Tell them to repair him at their leisure." Megatron commanded.

"Yes, Lord Megatron." Scrapper said with a nod of his head. Megatron began to shut the door, "Lord Megatron…"

"What is it?" the Decepticon leader looked at the Constructicon leader.

"I'm glad you were successful. I knew you would be," Scrapper stated. Megatron nodded. The Constructicon leader then turned and walked away. Megatron shut the door but as he began to walk back to where Soundwave was there was another knock.

"What the heck is it now?" He opened it and almost found himself swept away in a sea of little human-sized robots. The cassettes swarmed in and gathered around their creator.

"How's Soundwa-Hey! He's awake! Hi Soundwave!!!!" Frenzy cried happily as he ran to Soundwave. Unfortunately in his excitement he miscalculated his steps and found himself slipping and falling into the energon. The other cassettes jumped or flew over him and embraced their "father." Soundwave enfolded his creations, being much larger then they were he was capable of enveloping all of them at once. Frenzy's head poked out from the energon with a huff. Megatron and the other cassettes laughed. Soundwave picked Frenzy up out of the energon and set him on his shoulder.

"I must have caused you great apprehension," Soundwave pointed out.

"You did! We were worried sick…" Rumble admitted. Ravage growled softly in agreement. Megatron watched the interaction between Soundwave and his cassettes, and realized how so very close they were to losing him. His life had literally almost slipped through their fingers. One of the most painful things Megatron had ever been forced to witness was the mental deterioration of his own subordinate, and felt a strong sense of relief that it wasn't permanent. Now things were back to normal, almost as if the previous events had never happened. But they did happen, and because of this Megatron had been forced to re-evaluate his relationships, not only with Soundwave but with all of his soldiers. He once again had to come to terms with the fact that they may be powerful, but they were by no means invincible. This did not worry him, however, instead it made him appreciate the present. Whether or not he would live through the next battle he never knew, but he did know that he was not going to let disappointments of the past and apprehensions of the future guide him. Instead he planned to experience the present. He was going to change his relationships with his teammates, perhaps build the cooperation and loyalty that appeared to grant such strength to their Autobot antagonists. 

And he was going to start with Soundwave. 

But first thing's first…

"Now that it's finally over," Megatron stated. "As soon as Soundwave's up to it, we're going to pay the Insecticons a little visit. We're going to teach them that payback's a bitch."

_Author's Notes: I'm finally done! This chapter was very difficult because I worried about keeping everyone in character, and where exactly to insert that confrontation between the Constructicons and Starscream. But I'm quite proud of it, as it was one of the most challenging stories I've ever written. _

About a month or two ago, I had been reading Transformer fan fictions and stumbled upon some frightening ones about Megatron and Soundwave's relationship. They usually end up acting OOC and have a wild romp in four different positions. These fanfics disturbed me, but I couldn't help but wonder if I could write a story that involves their relationship without it being corny or OOC. (Not all Megatron/Soundwave fanfics are like that, just most of the ones I find) Also, I didn't want this to be a romance fan fiction. My idea wasn't to hook anyone up, it was more to allow them to explore their relationships. Obviously something drastic would have to happen to cause Megatron to do something like that. I also wanted to write something purely original. Thus, Silence was born. 

I decided early on that I wanted this to have a happy ending, that there was no good reason to kill poor Soundwave after all the crap I put him through in the previous chapters. I harnessed the best of my abilities to keep everyone in character, and the story consistent and canon. Thank you all so very much for your reviews! Without them I would have never known how it was turning out. =D 


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